About Us
How we began.
In 2001, a Boston teen was brutally murdered while being commercially sexually exploited. Latasha was 17 years old and living in a group home funded by the Department of Children and Families (DCF). Unbeknownst to any of the caring adults in her life (her family, her DCF worker, the group home staff), she was being sold for sex. Following her death, city leaders came together to ask "was this an isolated incident or the tip of the iceberg?” We quickly learned it was the tip of the iceberg.
Out of Latasha's death, My Life My Choice was born.
Survivor Empowerment
We provide intensive, consistent support with a multidisciplinary, survivor-led team to provide community and stability for our mentees.
Led by survivors. Informed by evidence.
Our holistic battle tested approach is grounded in the experiences of youth who have survived the ugly realities of commercial sexual exploitation. Our mentors, survivors themselves, provide stability, community and hope to exploited children. Our partners and allies stand with us, shoulder to shoulder, in the fight for change and social justice. Our vision for change centers around four strategic endeavors: survivor empowerment, prevention, training, and policy and advocacy.
Prevention
Our nationally-acclaimed, research-based curriculum and prevention solutions protect young people from predators.
Training
We work closely with service providers, law enforcement and community members to build a strong network of responsive and informed providers and community leaders.
Policy and Advocacy
We advocate for legislative change that codifies safety, rights, and resources for minor and adult survivors of commercial sexual exploitation.
Our Values
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Social Justice
We provide more than just social services. We are warriors fighting for social justice who aim to dismantle the systems that give rise to trafficking and exploitation.
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Survivor Leadership
Through Survivor Leadership, we give voice to a movement by uplifting and inspiring others, who, too, are strong, resilient, and worthy of greatness.
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Empowerment
Empowerment is not something that is handed out. It is the process of taking back or finding one’s power. It is reclaiming the breath in our voices that was once kept quiet, suffocating.
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Unconditional Love
We provide unconditional love to the youth we serve. It is what all children deserve and it is what we do every day.
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Community
Community unites us, keeps us from feeling alone, and helps us feel part of something greater than ourselves.
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Equity
Racism, sexism, classism, heterosexism, transnegativity, ageism, and ableism have no place at My Life My Choice. We are committed to advancing equity internally and advocating for it externally.
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Opportunity
At the intersection of hope, possibility and access lies opportunity. We make sure those roads all cross.
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Effective Allyship
For effective allyship, one must honor and amplify that those most affected by an injustice have the greatest knowledge to fix it.
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Resilience
We model and teach resilience. It is the courage to begin anew, and it is the refusal to give up hope.
Our core values are all grounded in the undeniable truth that people have fundamental human rights, including the right not to be bought or sold.
Our Team
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Olivia Angood-Hardy, LICSW
Assistant Clinical Director
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Natasha Bate
Training and Partnerships Coordinator
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Cailyn Carr
Development Manager
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Alina Caudle
Evaluation and Communications Co-Op
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Jenna Clark
Case Manager
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Akida Cooper
Senior Survivor Mentor and Groupwork Coordinator
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Shikha Datta
Senior Manager of Youth Services
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Carol Dupras
Senior Survivor Mentor
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Maria Flores
Clinical Coordinator
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Nora Gallo
Public Policy and Advocacy Manager
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Lisa Goldblatt Grace, LICSW, MPH
Co-Founder & Co-Executive Director
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Ashley Guevara, LICSW
Assistant Clinical Director
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Bridget Herndon
Senior Survivor Mentor
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Indigo Kirsh
Outcomes and Evaluation Manager
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Holly Landry
Senior Survivor Mentor
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Bridgette MacDowell
Senior Survivor Mentor
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Berkeley McCarthy
Senior Case Manager
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Debra Medina-Andrews
Survivor Mentor
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Tonya Morris
Training & Survivor Leadership Manager
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Audrey Morrissey
Co-Executive Director
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Charel Murrell
Assistant Director of Prevention & Partnerships She/Her/Hers
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Rachel Niemiec, DNP, FNP-C
Director of Training and Partnerships
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Nancy Rachel Rousseau, MS
Senior Director of Development
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Karilyn Rivera
Economic Empowerment and Housing Coordinator
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Emma Salters
Communications Manager
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Kat Santiago
Assessment Coordinator She/Her/Hers
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Katina Scott
Operations Manager
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Sonja Solberg Potter
Assistant Director
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Sharon Teed-Medeiros
Senior Survivor Mentor & Assessment Specialist She/Her/Hers
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Tina Valila, LICSW
Senior Clinical Director
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Delia Vega
Senior Survivor Mentor and Policy and Advocacy Specialist
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Barbara Wanyana
Senior Survivor Mentor
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Phoebe Wraith
Grants Coordinator
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Board of Directors
Ziba Cranmer, Chair
BU Spark!Patricia Bellinger-Balzer, Vice-Chair
Harvard Kennedy SchoolCarolina Avellaneda
Vice President and General Council of Emerson CollegeStacy Belf
State StreetJennifer “Jenn” Borggaard
AlderBrook AdvisorsCamille Carlstrom
Fidelity Institutional Asset
Management
Brenda Diana
Ropes and Gray
Luke Goldworm
U.S. Attorney's OfficeAshley Judd
Maheen Kaleem
Grantmakers for Girls of ColorKatrina Huff-Larmond
Randolph Town CouncilorMakeeba McCreary
New Commonwealth Fund
Christina Pujals Ronan
Massachusetts Attorney General’s OfficeMelissa Snow
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
Andrew “Andy” Takats
CognizantGoldie Taylor
Dana-Farber Cancer InstituteBrian Ulicny
Raytheon BBN Technologies
Financial Integrity
At My Life My Choice, we are focused on building a lean operation with a committed staff and effective programming. We rely on diverse funding streams, including federal grants, earned income, private grants and individual giving to achieve this. We work diligently to grow the organization, without compromising the quality of our services, while planting the seeds for future sustainability and advancement.
REVENUE – FY2022
$3,774,875
EXPENSES – FY2022
$3,893,921
Our Foundation Partners
Frederick C. Lutze & Christian Rausch Family Foundation